Folding-door structure.



N. A. PALMER.

FOLDING DOOR STRUCTURE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 5. 1917.

1 ,24613 1 4. Patented Nov. 13, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

WITNESSES fl K W ZHMEK INVENTOR Ii? a 2 ATTORNEY N. A. PALMER.

FOLDING DOOR STRUCTURE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 5. 1917.

1,246,314. Patented Nov. 13, 1917 D V 2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

FIG. 5

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flaw/1M1 fill/WK INVENTOR 5 6 9 Mum/Mr NORMAN a rnnmnn, or LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

FOLDING-DOOR. sTnUcTUnE.

Specificationof Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 13, 1917.

Application filed July 5, 1917. SeriaLNo. 178,795.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, NORMAN A. PALMER, of Louisville, Jefierson county, Kentucky,

' have invented new and useful Improvements in Folding-Door Structures, of which the following is a full and complete specification. The object of my invention is to provide folding doors ada ted for use in closing wide door-spaces, o such'type that the folding door can readily be folded back out of the way, and that the operation of folding shall be easily done and with a minimum of interference with the furnishing of the room. I am aware that folding doors made up of a number of panels have been heretofore used, but the improvements hereinafter de- .scribed and claimed, are, as I believe, novel.

Figure 1 represents a plan or top view of the door and the track by means of which the door panels are supported and guided, parts of this track being left out, for convenience in getting the drawing on the sheet. In this drawing, thegreater part of the door is shown folded back out of the way. Fig. 2 is an elevation corresponding to Fig. 1, and showing the door panels in the same position as illustrated in Fig. 1. A part of the partition structure is shown cut away, so as to exhibit certain details which would otherwise lbeh'idden, and which are later referred to. Fig. 3 is a plan view of applicants invention, showing the door extended to ,a point where the door opening is nearly closed, the track bein cut away in the middle portion to ive a c earer view of the door and the smal carriages which support'the panels. .Fig.4 is a side view of one of the carriages used to support the panels, showing its relation to the track on which it runs. Fig. 5 is a cross section at XX of Fig. 4 showing the method by l which the panels are suspended and uided. Fig. 6 isa detail view of small ending rollers inset in the panels.

Similar figures refer to similar parts throughout the views.

In the drawings, A and B represent op 0- site walls of the room or opposite door acings, the distance between the same representing the horizontal width of the door opening which is to be closed by the doorshutter. A multiplicity of door-sections or panels, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, is provided, each panel except the innermost being preferably about as wide as an ordinary room door and nearly as tall as the opening which is to be closed by the folding door. The panels are so hinged together on vertical edges that when completely extended, they form a door-shutter, adapted'to close the entire opening, and when folded together with the panels parallel to each other form a compact mass against the wall A, extending out from the wall a distance equal to the combined thickness of the several panels. It will be noticed that the hinging is alternate, that is alternate joinings bend in opposite directions. The panel 1, nearest the wall A, is approximately half the width of the other panels, and is appropriately hinged to the wall A. In the form shown,. the shutter formed by the panels is mainly supported by movable carriages or supports 17, which are adapted to support alternate panels at the centers of the tops thereof, and which are further adapted to move upon certain tracks 25 hereinafter described, the said tracks 25 also serving as guides, directing the motion of said carriages 17. Said movable supports or carriages 17, as illustrated,

areeach composed of four wheels 20 and a central frame or body 19 having a vertical opening thereinthrOugh which passes a supporting rod 21 enlarged at the top, so that said rod 21 is free to turn, but not to pass through said opening. A. plate 23 is fixed to the upper portion of the door panels, and the said supporting-rod 21 is bolted to said plate 23, so that the;weight of the panel, or any other portions of the door, is mainly carried by the supporting rod 21 and the carriage '17. It will be noticed that the construction ermits the turning of the door panel about t c axis of the rod 21, without turning the carriage 17 The rectangular tube or pipe 10 has a slot in its lower portion running the length of the tube, shown in section in Fig. 5, the horizontal walls of the tube on either side of said slot, serving as tracks 25 on which the wheels 20 of the carriage are adapted to run, the supporting rod 21 passing through thesaid slot. The fending roller 22 is rovided, being confined to rotation around t e axis of the rod 21 at such a point that it bears against one side or the other of the slot being slightly less in diameter than said slot is wide. It is an V idle roller, and tends to prevent binding, and

carriage 17 runs, is suspended by the hanger attached to a supporting joist 15 above, said hanger being fastened to the tube 10 by the strap 12. As is hereinafter described, thetracks 25 and the tube 10 are curved at a part of their length, such curved portion eing closer to the wall A, that is, to the wall to which the door is hinged, than to the wall or door-facing B.

Applicants device avoids the waste of space necessarily involved with the type of foldin door referred to, by making it possible or some parts of the door to be extended completely before other parts of the door have changed their position at all. After the panels havebeen unfolded adjacent to the curved portion of the track, they can be slid forward, requiring no more space than the thickness of the door. This result is made possible by the curve in the track, as shown at 11. This curve is so formed and spaced that some of the panels may be unfolded, without moving other panels or folding other panels and some may pe folded,"while the others remain in direct In order to regulate the folding and unfolding of the panels, and to prevent any folding of panels in that portion of the door space which is farthest away from the door facing A, to which the end panel is attached, fold-preventing members are provided extending from the wall B part way across the upper part-of the door opening, and extendin down far enough so that panels which liave advanced far enough to tie'between said members, are kept edge to edge, their corresponding surfaces lyin in the same plane. Thus, foldin or unfol ing 1 is confined to that portion of the width of the door space, which is adjacent to the inner or attached end of the door, which is hinged. Folding occurs only in that part of the door openin which is not afieoted by the fold-preventing members above referred to. As shown in the drawing, the

fold-preventing members consist of two angle irons 13 and 14 attached to the tracks, extending down therefrom so that they are on each side of the door panels when extended perpendicularly to the door facing A, thus forming flanges, extending part way across the upper part of the door openin so as to prevent any folding of the ane s which are pulled out ,far enough to be in that part of the door space.

So-called accordion doors of the sliding type are common. It is usual to support such doors by carriages designed to support alternate panels, and to furnish a track, running above the door opening, so that the door can be drawn back and forth. In this usual construction, thesupporting carriages being attached at the centers of certain of the panels, usually alternate panels, it is necessary that as the door is extended each of the panels deviates by an equal angular distance from the general direction of the open door; that is, the whole door opens uniformly, like an accordion. This characteristic of the ordinary sliding folding door is a disadvantage, because it tends to make the door harder to handle, and more likely to bind, and also because the door when partly opened takes up a great deal of floor space. The trouble-is occasioned by the fact that the centers of the panels are confined to a straight line, so that when one moves, all of them being hinged together must move at the same time. Therefore, unless sufficient force is applied to set all the panels in motion at once, no motion occurs. As shown later, applicants device is free from this objection, and responds to a gentler force. o

The curve is so formed and located that if all of the panels are folded back together against wall A. parallel to each other, an operator, grasping the outer-most or free panel, is able to pull it out to the position shown in Fig. 1, without changing the position, or exerting any force on any panels except the one which he is touching and the one next to it, the curve in the track permitting the carriage and consequently the center of the first panel, to get out of line with the centers of the other panels, and so unfold while others remain folded. If the operator continues to pull, beyond the position shown in Fig. 1, another panel will be moved, and 100 the carriage attached to panel 7 as shown in the drawing will begin to follow the same course pursued by the carriage supporting the panel 9. When the operation is continued further, the outermost panel will as- 105 sume a position perpendicular to the wall A, while the remaining panels will be in various angular positions. No change takes place in the position of the inner-most panel, until the process of extending the door has 110 progressed a considerable degree. It is obvious that the. curve is located with reference to the panel supports so that when the door is completely extended, none of the panel sup orts come to rest on the curved portion 115 of t e track. When the door is closed, and it is desired to move the shutter back out of the way, the narrow panel is folded back first, and thereafter, the outermost panel is pushed back edgewise. When this is done, 120 folding occurs adjacent to the curve in the "track, which guides the carriages so that side a short distance, and comes opposite the fold preventing members previously referred to, tending to diminish friction between the panel and said members.

It is found by experiment that it requires less force to operate a door of this type, and that it can be operated with less tendency to stick or bind, than any other type. For this reason applicants invention is particularly useful in operate a number of such doors simultaneously by mechanical means. My invent1on is not limited to the form of track here shown, nor to the specific embodiment illus* trated herein. a

I am aware that folding doors have been heretofore constructed,'in which carriages have been provided, adapted to support the shutter, at certain joinings, and attached in such a way that when two carriages approach each other, the two sections, between the points of attachment of the two carriages, fold together, projecting outwardly from the track on which the carriages run, but such a, construction has serious disadvantages, not present in my device. It will be seen that in the process first above described, the door is thrown out of balance. It requires some kind of a stay or groove at the bottom in order to prevent the whole structure from assuming an inclined position. In my device, there is practically no friction except that due to the weight of the door, and no groove is necessary at the bottom, because my device is at all times perfectly balanced. Where a part of the door projects out in one direction from the track, without anything in the other direction to balance it, there is'inevitably friction against the groove at the bottom, by reason of the tendency of the door to balance itself and assume an inclined position.

I am also aware that doors have been constructed having a slot with a curve or bend at one end thereof, adjacent to the wall against which the door is to be folded, for the guidance of only one panel, that next to the jamb. It can be seen at once that the usefulness of such a structure is limited to doors which are light enough so that the top support is not required at short intervals, or to doors which have a track or supports at the bottom. It will be seen that my device need not touch the floor or have any guide or support at the floor at all, and permits the use of a support for every alternate page My device has positive guidance an I alternate panels as they pass the location of the curve, which is impossible in any structure in which the curve is located adjacent to the wall against which the folding occurs. It will be noticed that in my device the curve in the track does not extend to either end but has straight end portions extending cases where it is desired to direction at the point of support of.

in the same direction, with a curved portion intermediate thereof, the distance from the wall against which the door is to be folded to the beginning of the curved portion of the track is approximately equal to the aggregate thickness of all the panels, this being the preferred distance. However,.if this approximate distance is preserved, a variat1on of one or two panel thicknesses would not necessarily render the device inoperable. The curved portion of the track in my device is located at a part of the track which is traversed by all the carriages when the door is moved from a completely folded up position to a completely extended position or the reverse.

I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent the following:

In a folding door structure, a multipl city of panels hinged together, alternate oinings of which face in opposite directions movable means for supporting certain c said panels, said supporting means being attached to panels supported thereby, approximately in the center of the top of said panels, all in combination with a track in contact with said movable means, said track having two straight portions extending in approximately the same direction and an intermediate curved portion connecting said straight portions.

2. In a folding door structure, designed portion and one edge of the door opening being approximately equal to the aggregate thickness of the several panels.

3. In a folding door structure, adapted when extended to close a door opening, and when drawn back, to leave same open, a multiplicity of panels hinged at alternate vertical joinin s, in opposite directions, means for mova 1y supporting certain of said panels by attachment approximately at the center of the top of the panels so supported,

and means for causing said movable supporting means, when the panels are moved in closing the door opening or 1n opening same,

to follow a path of which the beginning and end portions arein the same directions and an intermediate portion changes direction.

a. In a folding door structure adapted to close a door opening, or leave same substantially open, according to the position of its l mu movable parts, a shutter composed of a multiplicity of panels joined by hinges, alternate panels being hinged in oppositedirections, in combination with. carria%es attached apportions adjacent to each side of the door 10 opening, but ha ing a curve at a part thereof which is traversed hi all of the carriages,

running in approximately the same direc- 15 tion as the other.

NORMAN A. PALMER. Witnesses:

Roy B. HANSBROUGH,

STELLA B. Moonn. 

